Whoopi Goldberg Grills Bernie Sanders On Not Dropping Out: ‘Can You Explain Why You’re Still In The Race?’
Whoopi Goldberg grilled Bernie Sanders on his insistence to stay in the Democratic primary despite facing what experts call an insurmountable lead for Joe Biden, accusing the Vermont senator of causing a rift among Democratic voters.
Sanders appeared on The View on Wednesday to discuss his campaign and insistence to remain in the race despite a number of calls for him to drop out. Biden has seized control of the race after a series of major victories starting with the South Carolina primary and continuing through a series of delegate-rich Tuesdays.
The former vice president now has a delegate lead of roughly 300, which is seen as insurmountable given that Democratic primaries are not winner-take-all and that Biden is polling with a double-digit lead over Sanders. In order to surpass Biden, Sanders would need to win the remaining races with roughly 57 percent of the vote — a mark that he has achieved in only a handful of races and could not even reach in his home state of Vermont.
As The Daily Beast noted, Goldberg told Sanders in Wednesday’s interview that his decision to stay in the race is reminiscent of 2016, when he remained in the race until the Democratic National Convention despite Hillary Clinton clinching the nomination. When Sanders interjected to say that he worked hard to help elect Clinton, Goldberg said it was not until after a long and contentious primary.
“Just so we’re clear, you worked for Hillary, but it took you a very, very long time to hop in, and your people also, it took a very long time for them to hop in,” Goldberg said.
She continued to grill Sanders, asking, “Why are you still in the race?”
How is it that Whoopi Goldberg just did a better job of holding Bernie accountable than any of the actual journalists in the mainstream media? Make it make sense. pic.twitter.com/Z1F5INsvu6
— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) April 1, 2020
Sanders said that he was still assessing his campaign plans, but wanted to make sure people had a right to vote.
“Last I heard, people in a democracy have a right to vote, and they have a right to vote for the agenda that they think can work for America, especially in this very, very difficult moment,” Sanders said.
Earlier in the week, Sanders said that he still saw a “narrow” path to victory in the Democratic primary. In an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Sanders said that he had a grassroots movement that believed in him and wanted to “continue the fight.” Sanders and his campaign staff have continued to press for Medicare for All, criticizing Biden’s support of an expanded Obamacare by adding a public option.
